Rise of the Shogun
by Laputian-Blackwriter
Summary: Forced to mature from an early age, Naruto is determined to become a ninja, dedicating himself to becoming strong. Confident and cunning, he pursues his dream of being Hokage... though his ambition is much grander than that.


It was midday, and the sun was just at its highest peak in the sky. Light filtered in through the canopy of the trees, and there was a light, cool breeze that meant it was the perfect day to go outdoors. Whoever did would find themselves in a peaceful and idyllic setting, accompanied by the unspoiled sounds of local birds and wildlife.

A young woman leapt through the trees at rapid speed, so blindingly fast she was hardly discernable, yet without making any disturbance as she swiftly moved from branch to branch.

She stopped for a moment, casting a swift glance around her before moving off again, sprinting up a tree and pushing off, gliding smoothly through the forest before bouncing off several trunks and landing on the ground, heading for an opening where she could clearly hear the sounds of rushing water.

She came across a great waterfall and a lake, where a man was sitting with his back to her, gently balanced on the water, in the meditative position.

From what she could see, the man was strongly built, wearing a dark red and black coat. Strapped to his back was an incredibly long blade, in a simple black scabbard, and his spiky yellow-blonde hair fell down to his shoulders.

Before she could move or do anything, the man stood up. "Haku… it's been too long, hasn't it?"

Haku's eyes widened when he disappeared in a burst of speed, narrowly ducking before the sword came flying across where her head would have been – she leapt back, sliding onto the water before firing off senbon needles, which he easily avoided before streaking towards her in a blur.

The two leapt up, exchanging blows though Haku found herself hard-pressed to keep up. She was constantly on the defensive, ducking, weaving and dodging around his strikes – the effort was taxing, and as she quickly blocked another roundhouse kick she snaked around him, dropping back onto the lake surface before going through some seals. "Secret Technique: Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death!" She shouted.

The ice needles went hurtling towards her target, who raised his weapon and began spinning it rapidly until it was a whirlwind of motion, deflecting all the needles away. He gently landed back on the water surface, strapping the weapon once more to his back. "You've gotten considerably faster," he praised, allowing a smile to grace his sharp features. "It's good to see you. How's Zabuza-sensei?"

Haku smiled slightly at the honorific. "Zabuza-sama is doing well. I see you took his advice to heart."

He grinned, looking down at his blade, which, Haku absent-mindedly noted, he had not drawn from its scabbard in their quick bout. "Yes. My hodachi feels like another limb, ironically, considering how many limbs it's taken off," he remarked.

The two made their way to the top of the waterfall and into a small forest clearing.

"Hokage-sama…"

Quickly he cut her off with a curt gesture. "None of that, we've been through too much after all."

"Naruto-sama…" she smiled slightly at his annoyance. "Kiragakure is proud to offer you its support when the Kage Summit occurs. If what you say is true…"

"This situation with Akatsuki is escalating rapidly into another Shinobi War." Naruto stated seriously. "Though Nag …Pain's attack caused extensive damage to Konaha, we've managed to recover quickly, and the attack has allowed room for me to completely militarise all aspects of the village for as long as need be and to get rid of the unnecessary elements. Our focus now is on preventing Akatsuki with carrying out its plan, and since Konoha will be on the frontlines anyway, we can effective lead the alliance."

Haku laughed softly. "I see you're just as cunning as when we last saw you. There's more to this than just defeating Akatsuki right? There's always another thing to accomplish."

Naruto simply smiled. "There must be an alliance. Once there is… this will be the first true step."  
"To what?" Haku inquired.

The Hokage closed his eyes. "To peace in the world."

-N-

**Several years ago**

"Oh Yukari! You're up early this morning!" The elderly shopkeeper said with a kind face.

"Hello Aiko-san," the young girl said with a polite bow. "We've had distant relatives visiting for several days, and they've nearly eaten us out of our home," she said with a smile.

The lady sighed. "That's perfectly alright, Yukari. You know you are such a beautiful girl. I'm certain you could have any man you want, especially if he's rich!"

"Thank you for your compliment," she said with a blush. "But you're embarrassing me Aiko-san!"

"Oh go on, then, pick what you need," the lady said with a chortle.

Yukari went through the aisles, picking out all the food and necessities she needed in a basket before handing them over – she had picked out a large variety of fruit and vegetables, as well as lean, frozen meats, and lots of fish.

"As always, you eat very healthily," the woman complimented. "It must be how you obtain such a marvellous figure!"

"I'm sorry, but I can't stay and talk, oka-san needs me to help her with the washing. But I'll see you next week," Yukari said with a hurried bow, before turning and leaving.

The old shopkeeper watched her as she left. "That girl… she's going to make a fine catch someday!" Her eyes brightened as she quickly thought of several eligible men for her to date.

Several blocks away, 'Yuraki' was on a roof. Looking around to make sure no one was watching, she vanished in a puff of smoke, to be replaced by a much shorter, blonde boy dressed in a simple black t-shirt with dark orange highlights and jeans.

He sighed in relief as he leapt off and landed in an alleyway, before taking out a book as he made his way back to his apartment. It took all of his self-control and cunning not to crack when dealing with that barmy old lady, however it was too perfect, being in a smaller part of Konoha where chuunin and jounin were less likely to frequent, meaning a lesser chance of someone seeing through his henge, and the old lady was incredibly talkative and an integral part of the Konoha gossip and rumour mill – especially on the affairs of Shinobi. In a simple conversation in which he had a very minimal presence, the lady had told him many interesting things about what she'd heard of Konoha's clans – things that Naruto filed in his head for later.

It took him a little longer to get back to his apartment, but the trade-offs were worth it.

Since he had been living here his apartment had undergone a complete makeover. It had taken him a lot of hard work, but since he was living here Naruto reasoned that he should take care of it, and it was no longer as run-down as it had been since he first came here. The walls had gone through multiple layers of paint to cover all the cracks and graffiti, much of the furniture had been repaired or replaced, and he had reorganised it to have more room for his books.

It wasn't luxurious, but at least it wasn't a complete pigsty either.

As Naruto put all his groceries in the fridge, he sat back on the bed, looking out the window as he contemplated the day's importance.

Today, he would be tested to become a genin. He had struggled and pushed, but every time, that Bunshin no Jutsu had eluded him. However, though determination Naruto had pushed to refine himself to the point where he could do it, and when he finally found how to the answer was so ridiculously simple that it was a blow. He had read every book, looked up everything he could find on Jutsus, Chakra and Seals, yet the answer was so blaringly obvious that it was a hit to his ego. He had pushed himself to use his brains like a real Shinobi, yet he couldn't wrap his mind around such a simple alternative.

That would change today.

Picking up his book, he began walking to school.

Naruto didn't know where his love for books came from. Certainly it wasn't something that he had started out with. However, when he had truly committed to his dream of Hokage, he had forced himself to catch up and read, and somehow, it stuck.

Maybe it was the idea that he could find an escape from his life. That he could become enthralled by the Yondaime's legendary Hiraishin no Jutsu, and almost be there as he watched it decimate armies, or see jiji-san at his prime, the legendary 'Kami no Shinobi'.

Such books were not commonly read, though Naruto himself was confused why they weren't. He went to a lot of trouble to acquire books and scrolls about many different stories and aspects of the Shinobi world, and since these were extremely rare, they occupied much of his time, to the point where he was forced to put aside pranking in order to get them. On top of training, it was no wonder Naruto's schoolwork suffered greatly.

However, to be honest… he was growing bored with the Academy, and that was the reason for his legendary tardiness. Everything they taught there seemed juvenile in comparison to what he read, granted, very few went to the library or bookstore asking for something like the complete chronicles of the Shinobi Wars or broke into the Shinobi library or ANBU headquarters scouring for interesting scrolls and books. It had been risky, but he had also broken into several Clan households, though it had been worth it.

Compared to all that, the Academy was so… troublesome, to borrow his favourite Nara's saying.

Naruto paused as he crossed a road, lowering his book. "Hinata-chan, next time you want to try peeking on me, you should really stop by and say hello," he said with a smile.

He heard a quiet 'eep!' and a sudden crash, before the Hyuga heiress appeared, a blush spreading on her cheeks. "N-N-Naruto-k-kun…"

"Come on, if you wanted to walk to school together, you really should have asked," the boy stated, watching her fight down her blush before she quickly nodded and he resumed his pace, raising the book again, though he kept some of his attention on Hinata. "How are you? Have things been better at home?"

Hinata's fidgeting stopped as she lowered her head and noticeably became more depressed.

Naruto frowned. "I see."

They walked for a minute or two in silence, before Naruto stopped, and Hinata did as well, confused as she looked up.

"You shouldn't give up Hinata-chan. Listen, today's the genin exam, and once we both pass and get into teams, probably different ones, we shouldn't get too separated. We should start training together," he said.

Hinata would probably have fainted had she not been so shocked. Truthfully, it was a weird friendship, considering how quiet she was, yet when they first met Naruto was dazed that despite being the Hyuga heiress she wasn't as strong as she could be. It was an odd relationship, but somehow it worked, as Naruto was quite talkative, and he was determined to get the shy girl out of her shell to become a great Shinobi. After all, they had come a long way since she had constantly stopped fainting around him, so it wouldn't hurt to keep pushing her forward.

"You have everything you could want to be a great Shinobi, Hinata-chan." He closed his eyes. "And quite frankly, I think it's a waste if you don't use it."

"W-Whatever you s-say Naruto-kun…"

Naruto nearly scowled, but knew that it would depress the girl further. "Don't just listen to what I say. Be your own person." He stated. "My dream is to be Hokage. What's yours?"

Hinata lowered her eyes. "To be as strong as my father… and as kind as my mother."

He grinned. "That's a good dream Hinata-chan, but why stop there? Why not become stronger than your father?"

Hinata's eyes widened as she looked up again. "D-Do y-you think I could…"

"Why not?" He looked up. "Come on, we're going to be late."

-N-

"What took you so long?" Shikamaru asked in boredom with his head on the desk, as Naruto jumped into the desk beside him.

"Didn't know you cared, Shikamaru," Naruto said with an impish grin as he looked up at the clock, patiently waiting for the written exam to begin.

"I'm just wondering when you're going to return those scrolls you borrowed from me Naruto."

"I'm nearly finished with them. Next time I come around for Shogi I'll return them," Naruto promised as Iruka-sensei came in.

Shikamaru gave off a yawn. "Troublesome blonde…"

"Would have been more troublesome if you hadn't let me borrow them at all," Naruto remarked as the first exam began and he received his paper.

Turning it over, he looked at the first question and groaned in annoyance – algebra had never been one of his strong suits and was practically useless for a Shinobi. However, thankfully the equations were simple stuff and swiftly Naruto applied the formulas and worked through them all.

Though the start was slightly rocky he settled into a pace quickly, and found that the rest of the written exam was rather easy and straightforward, quizzing him on the different aspects of Shinobi tactics such as basic trap-setting, and strategy. Once he had finished, he promptly turned his paper over and decided to take a short nap for the rest of the time.

Once that was finished, the students soon headed outside for the hand-to-hand portion of the exam.

"Alright, class… QUIET DOWN!" Iruka shouted, his head exploding to massive proportions before the students promptly shut up. "Alright, class, this is the second part of the genin exam. As you can see…" he nodded at Mizuki who was in the centre of the sparring ring. "To pass the taijutsu portion, you simply need to fight for one minute, at an adequate level. Shuriken and kunai are permitted and this will allow us to see you use your skills in a combat setting. Don't worry, though Mizuki is a chunin, he won't attack at full strength."

Naruto nearly rolled his eyes. Having taken this exam before, he knew that the standards were woefully lax in terms of physical evaluation – considering how stick-thin some of the girls here were, they had to be, after all.

Watching his fellow students go one by one, he paid little attention, and nearly snorted as the Uchiha pulled off a flashy jump kick that had most of the class clapping, making him even haughtier than he usually was.

"Uzumaki Naruto!"

Hearing his name called, Naruto sighed, and got out of his seat. He heard Hinata whispering some words of encouragement, and smiled as he stepped into the ring.

"Ready Naruto?" At his nod, Mizuki got into a stance. "Then hajime!"

Naruto narrowly dodged a kick, and fired off a series of kunai that Mizuki easily dodged. The objective of this hand-to-hand exam of course was to test not just taijutsu but also the use of throwing weapons, thus it was a pre-requisite to actually employ them. The kunai were only a distraction however, just as he predicted Mizuki had leapt to the right to avoid them, something which he had noticed after the countless times he instructed them in the basic Academy taijutsu. When you were instructing significantly weaker students, it stood to reason you fell into bad habits, and Naruto had already moved to intercept him – with a burst of speed he quickly moved in front of Mizuki and grabbed his shirt, re-directing the older chunin's weight and built-up momentum as he ducked underneath him and threw him into the ground. Swiftly Naruto grabbed the man's arm and twisted it into a strong joint lock as he leaned it, pressing his own weight on top of him. "Looks like I win sensei." Naruto stated with a grin.

Iruka and the students gaped at him. "T-That's g-good Naruto, you can get out of the ring now," Iruka said in astonishment as he wrote down the boy's scores on his card. _Naruto… you've been working hard haven't you? Maybe you really can become the Hokage,_ he mused, remembering when the boy first came here years ago. He had quietened down significantly, however Iruka had no doubt he was just as determined; only now, he was entirely focused instead of constantly playing pranks. _Though you should actually come to class instead of missing it! _He scowled in annoyance at the boy's incredible tardiness.

Naruto was pleased with his performance as he returned to his seat. He didn't need to look up to know that the Uchiha had simply snorted and continued to look smug, and that his horde of fan girls were still trying desperately to get his attention, while the rest of his classmates were a mix between surprise, boredom and condescension.

Soon enough, after the last few finished, they were brought back into the classroom for the final part of the exam: ninjutsu.

"The final part of your exam is simple – to pass, you must correctly create three Bunshin," Iruka stated. "Once your name is called, please come to the classroom next door."

Previously Naruto would have winced, as this was his single worst technique and the reason he had been held back. However, now he was confident that he would pass, and that confidence didn't leave him even as he stepped into the room, walking into the centre.

Taking in a deep breath, he exhaled and relaxed, making sure he wasn't tense. It was just another jutsu, an extremely easy, E-ranked jutsu… with that in mind, he quickly went through the three hand seals and released his chakra.

Once again, the chunin instructors were in for a shock. There was a massive burst of smoke, and when it cleared, the whole room was full of clones!

Iruka gaped in awe, his composure lost as he stood up in shock. _No… way. Naruto, you really are the number one most surprising ninja!_

Mizuki however was mentally seething. _Damn it, isn't this the demon brat's worst jutsu? I'm going to need some other way to convince the boy to steal the Forbidden Scroll for me… I can't afford any slip ups now…_

Naruto grinned sheepishly, unaware of his instructor's reactions. "So, Iruka-sensei… do I pass?"

Iruka marked something down, and gave the boy a grin. "Congratulations Naruto! You're officially a genin!"

"YATTA!" Naruto yelled, raising his fist in the air, Shinobi composure be damned! "I DID IT!"

"Congratulations, Naruto," Iruka said proudly as he gave him his forehead protector. "I'm sure you'll protect and serve the Hidden Village of Konoha well."  
Naruto grinned as he strapped the forehead protector to his head. "You'd better believe it Iruka-sensei. I am going to be Hokage, after all."

Iruka chuckled as the boy turned around and left. It was a far cry from the hyperactive blonde child from many years ago, running down the streets proclaiming loudly how he was going to be Hokage. Now, it was a calm, confident, yet still bold, statement. _Naruto, maybe you really will be the Hokage someday. _

-N-

Naruto sat on the swing outside the Academy, watching as the students dispersed one by one, with their parents or guardians. He ignored most of the murmurs and outright antagonistic comments, long since grown used to them, holding his forehead protector in satisfaction.

_I did it… I'm finally a genin. _Granted, he was the dead-last, a consequence of his frequent absences and rushed, half-finished homework, however that didn't matter. He was finally on the way to becoming Hokage, and he could finally (legitimately) enter the ninja section of the library!

Naruto looked up, giving Hinata a slight smile, which she nervously returned as she was accompanied home by an older Hyuga family member. Because few would ever fully approve of their friendship, whenever other Hyugas were around the two kept interactions to a minimum.

There was a rustling beside him, and Naruto leapt away in surprise, his eyes widening when he realised who it was. "M-Mizuki-sensei?"

-N-

"You know Naruto, Iruka-sensei didn't mean to be so tough through your time here," Mizuki stated as the two sat on the roof of the Academy, watching the sun set over the village. "He wanted you to be truly strong, since neither of you grew up with any parents."

Naruto chuckled. "It doesn't matter now does it Mizuki-sensei?" He flicked his forehead protector. "At the very least I'm a genin now."

"That's true. But you could have done a lot better. With your marks from the exam… you could easily have been Rookie of the Year."

Naruto grew silent. Sasuke had gotten Rookie of the Year, naturally, however he hardly saw why considering the boy seemed never to have done any work. He was just one of those students who was naturally gifted and found little trouble in whatever he did – unlike Naruto, he didn't need to work hard for it, it just came to him with little effort.

He was completely different. It had taken him many hours of reading and training to even pass the genin exams at all. All that training and reading meant there was little time left for homework or to enjoy being a kid, as he also needed to take care of himself and his apartment, which had gradually become less vandalised as he made sure it was well protected – still, people found a way.

"When you beat me in the combat portion of the exam, it was obvious that you should've gotten Rookie of the Year," Mizuki continued. "Sasuke was unnecessarily flashy and showy. In a real-life situation, that could get ninja killed."

Naruto sighed. "It doesn't matter now, does it? There's no way for me to change anything."

"Actually, maybe there is," Mizuki said as he stood up. "You see, there's a big secret about the genin exams, and if you do what I ask, you might be Rookie of the Year!"

Naruto perked up. "Really? What is that?"

Mizuki grinned.

-N-

_This was too easy! For a demon, you really are an idiot! _Mizuki smirked as he hid in the treetop, watching as the boy, carrying the large scroll on his back, ran into view. _Not that it matters. I'll simply kill you and take the Scroll… then Orochimaru will reward me!_ Barely able to contain his glee, he leapt down, plastering on a fake smile. "Naruto! You look like you've been working hard!"

The boy smirked. "Much harder than you think…"

"So, once you give me the Scroll, you'll be this year's Rookie of the Year." He paused, holding his hand out for it, but narrowed his eyes in annoyance when the boy didn't move. "Well? What are you waiting for?"

Naruto however closed his eyes, shaking his head. "You really must think I'm dumb. I mean, really, stealing the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing? I'm not some brainless one trick brawler. I'm a ninja!"  
Mizuki's eyes widened when the Hokage stepped out from behind a tree, and he did not look happy. _Crap! No way can I fight off the Sandaime Hokage! _But before he could turn and bolt, however, he gave a gasp of shock as he was struck on the back of the neck by Iruka, who had snuck up on him, and passed out.

"Well done Iruka," Sarutobi stated as ANBU appeared out of nowhere and took his body. "I'll have Ibiki question him on why he wanted the Forbidden Scroll."

Iruka frowned. "Hokage-sama… do you think he might be working for Orochimaru?"

"I'm not going to discount it as a possibility," The Hokage said, before turning to the genin. "Naruto, you did well in coming to tell me about this as soon as possible."  
"Haha, I wasn't about to be tricked so easily jiji-san!" Naruto said with a grin.

"Naruto! That's the Hokage you're talking to…" Iruka said in concern, but Sarutobi waved it off.

"Don't worry about it Iruka. Anyway, you wanted to learn one of the kinjutsu inside the Scroll as a reward, correct?"

"WHAT?" Iruka's eyes nearly bulged out of his sockets as he heard that. "Hokage-sama you can't be serious! Most of the techniques in that could seriously injure or kill Naruto! I don't want anything to happen to my student!"  
"I understand your concerns, but I have the perfect technique, especially given Naruto's difficulty in controlling the Bunshin no Jutsu," Sarutobi answered, at which Naruto sheepishly rubbed his head. It was true; he couldn't control the number of his Bunshin at all.

Naruto had originally guessed he had poor Chakra control, and because of this, pushed himself to learn exercises that were well beyond Academy standards – with nee-chan's help of course.

When he still couldn't do it, he tried to figure out an alternative way, and when he finally figured it out the answer was ridiculously simple – instead of focusing so hard on only producing three clones, Naruto would relax and let his chakra do the work. In conjunction with his better control he produced a massive overabundance of clones, and unfortunately he had no way to control the number of them, as even the slightest chakra spike could wildly vary the number.

Iruka could only marvel at the blonde's luck. _To have the Hokage take an interest and offer you a forbidden technique no less… you're insanely lucky, Naruto._

Sarutobi however could only mentally sigh in relief as this whole ordeal was over. _That was too close. If Mizuki had told him about the Kyuubi… forgive me Naruto. This isn't enough to make up for anything, but maybe this might help you._

-N-

A/N: No pairings decided yet. Hinata and Naruto are simply very close friends. While admittedly they would make an amusingly cute couple, I always feel bad for Hinata, and feel that with a confident Naruto as a good friend, she could easily rise up to become a powerful Shinobi.

I've hinted at a lot of things to come, and things that have happened in Naruto's childhood. You'll find out about it all piece by piece.

Originally this started out as an idea of a Naruto reading one of Bruce Lee's books on martial arts, and being inspired by his fighting ideologies. But we'll see how it goes since this is my first time writing anything Naruto-ish. I hope I didn't get anything wrong, it's such a big world.


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